‘England Is Mine’ Trailer: Morrissey Biopics of the World Unite

Take a bow, England Is Mine trailer. Boot the grime of the movie world in the crotch, dear.

In this upcoming film, Smiths frontman and iconic ’80s pop frontman Morrissey gets his own biopic slash origin story. In the film, Steve Patrick Morrissey is played by Jack Lowden; he’s first seen as a cranky music critic (he wrote short books on the New York Dolls and James Dean), but then transforms into a performer in his own right. The movie also chronicles his first introduction to Johnny Marr, who Morrissey then formed the Smiths with.

Here’s the official plot synopsis:

Biographical drama starring Jack Lowden as Morrissey – lead singer of the band The Smiths – and Jessica Brown Findlay as artist and musician Linder Sterling. This movie tells the story of Morrissey's early life, and it was written and directed by Mark Gill.

England Is Mine recently premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival where critics called it a “mid-tempo mope” and “suitably abrasive.” The major issue is that the film is unauthorized, and so it doesn’t feature any of the Smiths’ amazing music. (Neither does the trailer; in fact the music that is in the trailer sounds absolutely nothing like either Morrissey or the Smiths, which is a little odd.) Still, hardcore Smiths and Morrissey fans will probably be intrigued enough about this glimpse into their heroes’ earliest days in the music business. The movie opens in US theaters on August 25.